WINTER 2021NUTRITION BULLETIN

Welcome to the Winter edition of the Nutrition Bulletin and Happy New Year from the team here at the Almond Board. We hope that despite the challenges we all faced in 2020 that each and every one of you were able to enjoy some well-deserved time off to recharge and reconnect with loved ones over the holiday season.

In this issue, we highlight new research from the PREDIMED study and share some new Almond Academy resources to support you in connecting with clients, patients and peers digitally. We also include a new handout on the topic of sustained energy to help with those dark, sluggish mornings. Whilst we’re not able to meet in person, we have a number of virtual events coming up, so save the dates and join us from the comfort of your home! As ever, you’ll also find a tasty & nutritious recipe to inspire you & an update from the orchard.

IN THE LATEST EDITION OF THE ALMOND BOARD NUTRITION BULLETIN:

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Julibert A, Bibiloni M, Gallardo-Alfaro L, et al. Metabolic Syndrome Features and Excess Weight Were Inversely Associated with Nut Consumption after 1-Year Follow-Up in the PREDIMED-Plus Study nxaa289 The Journal of Nutrition

NUT CONSUMPTION & METABOLIC SYNDROMEAs the New Year rolls around many of your clients and patients will be setting goals to lose weight or get healthier. Year after year we see new fad diet plans in the headlines, yet Registered Dietitians and Nutritionists still recommend the Mediterranean diet at number one. Almonds fit into the Mediterranean diet, which emphasises plant foods including nuts and is recommended by health authorities including the WHO. In the landmark PREDIMED study, cardiovascular disease in those following the Med Diet was lowered by approximately 30% compared to those in the control diet.

New research from the ongoing PREDIMED-Plus study has found that increased nut consumption as part of a Mediterranean diet significantly reduces markers of Metabolic Syndrome (MetS) including, waist circumference, blood triglyceride concentrations, systolic blood pressure and BMI. MetS refers to a cluster of metabolic complications of obesity including abdominal obesity (determined by increased waist circumference), elevated triglycerides, reduced HDL-cholesterol, elevated blood pressure, and elevated blood glucose.

The aim of this study was to determine if changes in nut consumption over a 1-year follow up are associated with changes in MetS symptoms in middle-aged and older Spanish adults with high cardiovascular disease risk.

This study includes those participants who completed a food questionnaire at the start of the study and at the 1-year follow-up time. People with extremely high or low energy intakes were excluded, which resulted in data analysed for 5,800 participants (3,005 men and 2,795 women, ages 55-75 years old). The participants were overweight or obese (BMI ≥ 27 and